Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up numerous
times. I have always responded that I made labels using old dot matrix
prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago my label
manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank labels used
in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a scramble
between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are now gone. A
while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was time to get out
of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s. My 'new' Toshiba TEC
thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled to arrive today. I am
planning to move label printing off the Mac environment to the
PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any experience with this type
of printer? I think I am going store the label data in Access and drive the
label making process from there but I am not sure and would love comments.
I am so not ready for this. I guess the apple talk network comes down next.

Pat

Hi, Pat: Same general problem, no answers. I'm looking to you to be the
"Guinea pig" G. May I ask how much the e-bay printer cost you? Kenni

"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up numerous
times. I have always responded that I made labels using old dot matrix
prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago my label
manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank labels
used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a scramble
between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are now gone. A
while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was time to get out
of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s. My 'new' Toshiba
TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled to arrive today. I
am planning to move label printing off the Mac environment to the
PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any experience with this
type of printer? I think I am going store the label data in Access and
drive the label making process from there but I am not sure and would love
comments. I am so not ready for this. I guess the apple talk network
comes down next.

Pat

Hi Kenni, $200 for the printer plus $50 for shipping. The thing weights 50
pounds.

Pat

"Kenni Judd" wrote in message
. ..
Hi, Pat: Same general problem, no answers. I'm looking to you to be the
"Guinea pig" G. May I ask how much the e-bay printer cost you? Kenni

I have been using the Brother P-touch label maker for several years.
Purchased at an Office Max and have loved it. There are a variety of
different adhesives. The heavy duty has not faded at all. The adhesive has
remained strong despite sun, water etc. I'm totally sold.

Thanks.

Frank
"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up numerous
times. I have always responded that I made labels using old dot matrix
prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago my label
manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank labels
used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a scramble
between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are now gone. A
while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was time to get out
of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s. My 'new' Toshiba
TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled to arrive today. I
am planning to move label printing off the Mac environment to the
PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any experience with this
type of printer? I think I am going store the label data in Access and
drive the label making process from there but I am not sure and would love
comments. I am so not ready for this. I guess the apple talk network
comes down next.

Pat

We also use a P-touch, model 1500PC. Our labels are indestructible. The
stick is more likely to break than the label is to fade. This is not like
the old hand-held P-touch, but hooks up to the computer.

Of course, I realize that for commercial purposes a one shot system is what
one most likely needs.

Diana

"Frank H. Kirchner" wrote in message
...
I have been using the Brother P-touch label maker for several years.
Purchased at an Office Max and have loved it. There are a variety of
different adhesives. The heavy duty has not faded at all. The adhesive
has remained strong despite sun, water etc. I'm totally sold.

Thanks.

Frank
"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up numerous
times. I have always responded that I made labels using old dot matrix
prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago my label
manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank labels
used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a
scramble between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are
now gone. A while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was
time to get out of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s.
My 'new' Toshiba TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled to
arrive today. I am planning to move label printing off the Mac
environment to the PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any
experience with this type of printer? I think I am going store the label
data in Access and drive the label making process from there but I am not
sure and would love comments. I am so not ready for this. I guess the
apple talk network comes down next.

Pat

Frank: How long do you figure it would take you to print, oh, say, 2000
labels?

Pat: Good score, on that printer. It's been a while since I checked, but
even used on e-bay used to be much higher. I'll have to go look some more.
Thanks, Kenni

"Frank H. Kirchner" wrote in message
...
I have been using the Brother P-touch label maker for several years.
Purchased at an Office Max and have loved it. There are a variety of
different adhesives. The heavy duty has not faded at all. The adhesive
has remained strong despite sun, water etc. I'm totally sold.

Thanks.

Frank
"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up numerous
times. I have always responded that I made labels using old dot matrix
prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago my label
manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank labels
used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a
scramble between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are
now gone. A while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was
time to get out of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s.
My 'new' Toshiba TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled to
arrive today. I am planning to move label printing off the Mac
environment to the PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any
experience with this type of printer? I think I am going store the label
data in Access and drive the label making process from there but I am not
sure and would love comments. I am so not ready for this. I guess the
apple talk network comes down next.

Pat

Kenni-
I wouldn't even know how to guess. I'm not a commercial grower so I only
need to print a single label at a time.

I would think printing 2000 labels would start to get expensive and not
worth the cost.

Frank
"Kenni Judd" wrote in message
. ..
Frank: How long do you figure it would take you to print, oh, say, 2000
labels?

Pat: Good score, on that printer. It's been a while since I checked, but
even used on e-bay used to be much higher. I'll have to go look some
more. Thanks, Kenni

"Frank H. Kirchner" wrote in message
...
I have been using the Brother P-touch label maker for several years.
Purchased at an Office Max and have loved it. There are a variety of
different adhesives. The heavy duty has not faded at all. The adhesive
has remained strong despite sun, water etc. I'm totally sold.

Thanks.

Frank
"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up
numerous times. I have always responded that I made labels using old
dot matrix prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago
my label manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the blank
labels used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has been a
scramble between growers buying the last of the blank labels, they are
now gone. A while back my last dot matrix print died and I knew it was
time to get out of the 80's and charge into the technology of the 90s.
My 'new' Toshiba TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay is scheduled
to arrive today. I am planning to move label printing off the Mac
environment to the PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone have any
experience with this type of printer? I think I am going store the
label data in Access and drive the label making process from there but I
am not sure and would love comments. I am so not ready for this. I
guess the apple talk network comes down next.

Pat

Precisely why we see so many unlabelled orchids floating around ... Kenni

"Frank H. Kirchner" wrote in message
...
Kenni-
I wouldn't even know how to guess. I'm not a commercial grower so I only
need to print a single label at a time.

I would think printing 2000 labels would start to get expensive and not
worth the cost.

Frank
"Kenni Judd" wrote in message
. ..
Frank: How long do you figure it would take you to print, oh, say, 2000
labels?

Pat: Good score, on that printer. It's been a while since I checked,
but even used on e-bay used to be much higher. I'll have to go look some
more. Thanks, Kenni

"Frank H. Kirchner" wrote in message
...
I have been using the Brother P-touch label maker for several years.
Purchased at an Office Max and have loved it. There are a variety of
different adhesives. The heavy duty has not faded at all. The adhesive
has remained strong despite sun, water etc. I'm totally sold.

Thanks.

Frank
"Pat Brennan" wrote in message
g.com...
Hi all,

Over the years the topic of how to make plant labels has come up
numerous times. I have always responded that I made labels using old
dot matrix prints, special UV ink and File Maker Pro. About a year ago
my label manufacturer informed me they were no longer carrying the
blank labels used in dot matrix printers. Over the last year there has
been a scramble between growers buying the last of the blank labels,
they are now gone. A while back my last dot matrix print died and I
knew it was time to get out of the 80's and charge into the technology
of the 90s. My 'new' Toshiba TEC thermal label printer fresh off eBay
is scheduled to arrive today. I am planning to move label printing off
the Mac environment to the PC/windows/Microsoft world. Does anyone
have any experience with this type of printer? I think I am going
store the label data in Access and drive the label making process from
there but I am not sure and would love comments. I am so not ready for
this. I guess the apple talk network comes down next.

Pat

Pat:

Don't know about pot labels, but I use several label printers in
the lab to keep the flasks and tubes straight. I have a couple of Dymo
printers for labels, but they can only do paper labels, which wouldn't
work for the greenhouse. I also have some old Datamax printers, which
will do either direct or thermal transfer. And then I have an E-Class
Datamax for seed packet labels.

But the real brute is the M-Class Datamax, which I use for labels
on orchid flasks. It's a thermal transfer label, meaning it's
chemical-resistant, and won't fade. After that, it's up to the label
substrate in terms of longevity. I got a batch of miserable labels from
one company- the biggest name out there- and they fell apart after a few
months. Of course, I still have that legacy, and find more embrittled
labels every day.

Everything is driven through Access. Play with the page size until
you get it right. It all works out eventually, although it took me a few
hours to tweak it in- but I use barcodes, too (TBcarcode, I think it is),
which made it more complex. I use the barcode software to put barcodes on
flasks as well as seed packets. It was a lot of work to set it up, but as
anyone who has seen my handwriting can attest, it's a fantastic
improvement.

The email address in the header is bogus. Send no email there.

-AJHicks
Chandler, AZ

On Dec 8, 1:10 am, (Aaron Hicks) wrote:
Pat:

Don't know about pot labels, but I use several label printers in
the lab to keep the flasks and tubes straight. I have a couple of Dymo
printers for labels, but they can only do paper labels, which wouldn't
work for the greenhouse. I also have some old Datamax printers, which
will do either direct or thermal transfer. And then I have an E-Class
Datamax for seed packet labels.

But the real brute is the M-Class Datamax, which I use for labels
on orchid flasks. It's a thermal transfer label, meaning it's
chemical-resistant, and won't fade. After that, it's up to the label
substrate in terms of longevity. I got a batch of miserable labels from
one company- the biggest name out there- and they fell apart after a few
months. Of course, I still have that legacy, and find more embrittled
labels every day.

Everything is driven through Access. Play with the page size until
you get it right. It all works out eventually, although it took me a few
hours to tweak it in- but I use barcodes, too (Tbarcode, I think it is),
which made it more complex. I use the barcode software to put barcodes on
flasks as well as seed packets. It was a lot of work to set it up, but as
anyone who has seen my handwriting can attest, it's a fantastic
improvement.

The email address in the header is bogus. Send no email there.

-Chicks
Chandler, AZ

Aaron, thanks for the post. The thing is fighting me so it is good to
know it will be a fantastic improvement. Have not even tried Access
yet, but it is good to hear someone is doing it this way. I see
light. Some where along the install process I messed up email, so I
got out an old laptop, reloaded ME and got the printer to print a test
label. As soon as I determined that the printer was not DOA, I got a
hammer and some carpet tape and soon had an old Lexmark working. My
greenhouses are now labeled and I have 3 rolls of labels left. That
should give me enough time to get it working some time after the
holidays.

Kenny, The thing looks more like a toaster oven than a printer. I
got an old TEC printer because the guys at Economy said they have had
the least amount of head problems with this type. New heads run about
$500. In the thermal transfer printer world we print tags, labels are
adhesive backed things. Tags tend to be thicker and stiffer than
labels and not all of the printers work well with plant tags. Seems
Datamax is another brand to consider. If you go the eBay route, I
would recommend finding a printer that has a USB port. Not only does
the one I got not have a USB port, it is pre plug and play meaning you
have to find and set dip switches and is a general pain installing.
USB should not add too much to the price, most of the bidder seem to
be looking for Ethernet ready printers.

Pat

On Dec 12, 7:32 am, Pat Brennan wrote:
On Dec 8, 1:10 am, (Aaron Hicks) wrote:





Pat:

Don't know about pot labels, but I use several label printers in
the lab to keep the flasks and tubes straight. I have a couple of Dymo
printers for labels, but they can only do paper labels, which wouldn't
work for the greenhouse. I also have some old Datamax printers, which
will do either direct or thermal transfer. And then I have an E-Class
Datamax for seed packet labels.

But the real brute is the M-Class Datamax, which I use for labels
on orchid flasks. It's a thermal transfer label, meaning it's
chemical-resistant, and won't fade. After that, it's up to the label
substrate in terms of longevity. I got a batch of miserable labels from
one company- the biggest name out there- and they fell apart after a few
months. Of course, I still have that legacy, and find more embrittled
labels every day.

Everything is driven through Access. Play with the page size until
you get it right. It all works out eventually, although it took me a few
hours to tweak it in- but I use barcodes, too (Tbarcode, I think it is),
which made it more complex. I use the barcode software to put barcodes on
flasks as well as seed packets. It was a lot of work to set it up, but as
anyone who has seen my handwriting can attest, it's a fantastic
improvement.

The email address in the header is bogus. Send no email there.

-Chicks
Chandler, AZ

Aaron, thanks for the post. The thing is fighting me so it is good to
know it will be a fantastic improvement. Have not even tried Access
yet, but it is good to hear someone is doing it this way. I see
light. Some where along the install process I messed up email, so I
got out an old laptop, reloaded ME and got the printer to print a test
label. As soon as I determined that the printer was not DOA, I got a
hammer and some carpet tape and soon had an old Lexmark working. My
greenhouses are now labeled and I have 3 rolls of labels left. That
should give me enough time to get it working some time after the
holidays.

Kenny, The thing looks more like a toaster oven than a printer. I
got an old TEC printer because the guys at Economy said they have had
the least amount of head problems with this type. New heads run about
$500. In the thermal transfer printer world we print tags, labels are
adhesive backed things. Tags tend to be thicker and stiffer than
labels and not all of the printers work well with plant tags. Seems
Datamax is another brand to consider. If you go the eBay route, I
would recommend finding a printer that has a USB port. Not only does
the one I got not have a USB port, it is pre plug and play meaning you
have to find and set dip switches and is a general pain installing.
USB should not add too much to the price, most of the bidder seem to
be looking for Ethernet ready printers.

Pat- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

What is the model number of this toaster? What size tag rolls did you
get? I was wondering about maximum length of tags and their
*thickness* What really confuses me is that the printers offer stats
for labels and the only ones that mention max thickness of the print
media is the jacked-up-price "brand" the Horticultural label company
sells; which I suspect are just re-branded models. The end of the
dotmatrix printer....these are scary times indeed.

When I got a call from the label company this summer about how they
were not going to carry dotmatrix tag stock anymore I had just reveid
a box of ten 1000 lable rolls. I told the sales rep that I don't go
through these tags fast enough to make it worth buying one of the
printers she was selling and she told me that they would probably have
enough stocked dotmatrix rolls for the foreseable future if I needed
them. Who knows what that means or if tag horders have changed the
equation.

Earlier this year I was astounded that the new printer head for my old
epsom dotmatrix cost more than a replacement printer of the same make
and model. So this spring I bought a new printer and a replacement
head and then all those new tags and THEN I get the call about the
dotmatrix label shortage...

- Show quoted text -

What is the model number of this toaster? What size tag rolls did you
get? I was wondering about maximum length of tags and their
*thickness* What really confuses me is that the printers offer stats
for labels and the only ones that mention max thickness of the print
media is the jacked-up-price "brand" the Horticultural label company
sells; which I suspect are just re-branded models. The end of the
dotmatrix printer....these are scary times indeed.

When I got a call from the label company this summer about how they
were not going to carry dotmatrix tag stock anymore I had just reveid
a box of ten 1000 lable rolls. I told the sales rep that I don't go
through these tags fast enough to make it worth buying one of the
printers she was selling and she told me that they would probably have
enough stocked dotmatrix rolls for the foreseable future if I needed
them. Who knows what that means or if tag horders have changed the
equation.

Earlier this year I was astounded that the new printer head for my old
epsom dotmatrix cost more than a replacement printer of the same make
and model. So this spring I bought a new printer and a replacement
head and then all those new tags and THEN I get the call about the
dotmatrix label shortage...- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Hi Al,

If the weather stays this warm maybe we will have christmas.

I got a Toshiba TEC B-572-QQ-CHD printer. I am not sure what the B
stands for and it is often dropped. QQ is a country code and the one
we want. No idea about the CHD. The 5 in 572 stands for a 5" print
head. For standard plant tags, the TEC 472 with a 4" print head also
works fine. These printers have been discontinued and replaced with
the Toshiba TEC BSX4 and BSX5 which also work fine and maybe better
for plant tags. All of these TECs have some sort of floating head
which stands up to tags better than most thermal printers and are the
printers Checkpoint/Ecomony/Specialty/Label It re-markets. I am not
sure what the TXP printers are, but they are also remarketed by the
hort label companies. If you buy a used TEC it most likely came out
of a factory where it printed the UPC and warning labels that are
stuck all over a product and the box it is packed in. The used
printers may come with verity of options including rewinders, cutters,
flash memory and optional interfaces. The only option worth looking
for is a USB port, not only will getting it running be easier, but
most likely you will also be getting a newer printer. In industry
these printers are know as bar code printers and are real work
horses. With one of these we are ready to market to Wal*Mart.

For tags I got 9/16" X 4" X 20 mil styrene. These seems to be the
same tags you see coming from the larger Hawaiian growers and are very
similar to what we used with the dot matrix printers. If you have
ever looked at one of these tags you may have noticed a small notch
just above the V shaped portion that you stick in the mix. This is
for an optical eye in the printer so it knows where each new label
starts. When you print 5 feet of tags you will go through 5 feet of
ribbon (the ribbon is single pass). If all you print are 4" tags, the
472 or SX4 are cheaper to operate because the 4" ribbon is cheaper
than the 5" ribbon ($39 vs. $49 per roll or 20,000 labels) and of
course the 4" replacement head is cheaper.

As to why my computer's printer port and port #25 are not working -- I
have no idea.

Pat

On Dec 13, 6:51 am, Pat Brennan wrote:
- Show quoted text -

What is the model number of this toaster? What size tag rolls did you
get? I was wondering about maximum length of tags and their
*thickness* What really confuses me is that the printers offer stats
for labels and the only ones that mention max thickness of the print
media is the jacked-up-price "brand" the Horticultural label company
sells; which I suspect are just re-branded models. The end of the
dotmatrix printer....these are scary times indeed.

When I got a call from the label company this summer about how they
were not going to carry dotmatrix tag stock anymore I had just reveid
a box of ten 1000 lable rolls. I told the sales rep that I don't go
through these tags fast enough to make it worth buying one of the
printers she was selling and she told me that they would probably have
enough stocked dotmatrix rolls for the foreseable future if I needed
them. Who knows what that means or if tag horders have changed the
equation.

Earlier this year I was astounded that the new printer head for my old
epsom dotmatrix cost more than a replacement printer of the same make
and model. So this spring I bought a new printer and a replacement
head and then all those new tags and THEN I get the call about the
dotmatrix label shortage...- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Hi Al,

If the weather stays this warm maybe we will have christmas.

I got a Toshiba TEC B-572-QQ-CHD printer. I am not sure what the B
stands for and it is often dropped. QQ is a country code and the one
we want. No idea about the CHD. The 5 in 572 stands for a 5" print
head. For standard plant tags, the TEC 472 with a 4" print head also
works fine. These printers have been discontinued and replaced with
the Toshiba TEC BSX4 and BSX5 which also work fine and maybe better
for plant tags. All of these TECs have some sort of floating head
which stands up to tags better than most thermal printers and are the
printers Checkpoint/Ecomony/Specialty/Label It re-markets. I am not
sure what the TXP printers are, but they are also remarketed by the
hort label companies. If you buy a used TEC it most likely came out
of a factory where it printed the UPC and warning labels that are
stuck all over a product and the box it is packed in. The used
printers may come with verity of options including rewinders, cutters,
flash memory and optional interfaces. The only option worth looking
for is a USB port, not only will getting it running be easier, but
most likely you will also be getting a newer printer. In industry
these printers are know as bar code printers and are real work
horses. With one of these we are ready to market to Wal*Mart.

For tags I got 9/16" X 4" X 20 mil styrene. These seems to be the
same tags you see coming from the larger Hawaiian growers and are very
similar to what we used with the dot matrix printers. If you have
ever looked at one of these tags you may have noticed a small notch
just above the V shaped portion that you stick in the mix. This is
for an optical eye in the printer so it knows where each new label
starts. When you print 5 feet of tags you will go through 5 feet of
ribbon (the ribbon is single pass). If all you print are 4" tags, the
472 or SX4 are cheaper to operate because the 4" ribbon is cheaper
than the 5" ribbon ($39 vs. $49 per roll or 20,000 labels) and of
course the 4" replacement head is cheaper.

As to why my computer's printer port and port #25 are not working -- I
have no idea.

Pat- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Oh, this info is for keeping. Thank you! Good luck figuring out the
computer issues. Confidence is high.